spring newsletter south waikato veterinary...

Steve Whittaker, BVSc Vaughan Parker, BVSc, BSc (Hons) Eddy De Weerd, DVM Rochelle Jager BVSc

Edward Hunt , BVSc Rachael Hunt, BVSc Daniel Broughan, BVSc Rebecca Fone BVSc

Handy Hints to make spring easier

Spring Newsletter

South Waikato

Veterinary Services

Inside this issue:

Mating Management 2

At Risk Cows 2

More tips... 3

PenClox Intramammary 3

In Depth Mating Plans 4/5

Calcium & Down Cows 5

DCAD - Does it matter? 7

Listeriosis 7

Dehorning Calves 8

19 Swanston St,

Tokoroa

(07) 886 64 13

89 Tirau St,

Putaruru

(07) 883 30 18

108 SH 30

Whakamaru

(07) 882 86 85

DON’T GIVE OXYTOCIN UNTIL THE CALF IS ON THE GROUND

2 HOURS IS MAX - a cow trying to calve any longer has a problem

IF IN DOUBT PUT A GLOVE ON - Far

easier than dealing with a rotten calving

and better for the cow

If you assist a cow in calving, give her an

injection of 5mL of Oxytocin afterwards.

LUBE!! When calving a cow, you can never use too much lube.

PROLAPSES THAT ARE DOWN ARE BEST LEFT THAT WAY

If she is bright and alert, do not give her any IV metabolics.

A prolapse is much easier to replace in a down cow than a

standing cow. If however, she is on her side/sick/very

depressed, do give an IV treatment.

If you don’t currently do whole herd metrichecking (recommended),

mark down problem cows and get them checked 4 weeks after

calving. Examples are assisted calvings, twins, retained membranes

and downer cows.

Retained Membranes? We are hearing anecdotal evidence that

giving 5ml Oxytocin for a couple of days is helping speed up removal

- Try it out and give us a shout if it looks to be working

CAN’T PICK CALVES UP TWICE A DAY? Take a bucket of Day 1

Colostrum and stomach tube calves in the paddock - a night on a full

stomach is a good idea

Check out our Colouring in Competition on PAGE 6- Make sure

your kids have a go! Entries close end of August. Cool prizes for

the winners of each age group.



What to do with the “At Risk” Cow Metrichecking is a fast and economical way of checking for Endometritis in an entire herd. However, over

calving we will have many cows that for one reason or another are grouped into an “At Risk” category.

What constitutes “At Risk”? Two easy things - Calving related trouble or metabolic trouble.

Should “At Risk” cows be treated any differently? Some studies have started to crop up that have been

looking specifically at the Sensitivity of metrichecking - Metrichecking is by far the best option for finding

Endometritis but unfortunately cows with a closed cervix are missed - the pus is trapped inside.

The chance of missing cows INCREASES the further after calving they are

checked, this is confused with cows becoming clean on their own - self cure rates

2-3 weeks after calving are quite low (1-2% of cows will self cure from then on as

opposed to <2 weeks around 30% self cure).

So what should you do?

Mark At Risk cows and have them checked NO LATER than 4 weeks after calving,

this is especially important regarding cows that retain their cleanings - they are at

such high risk there is evidence to suggest they should be treated regardless.

TAILPAINT

The use of tailpaint well in advance of mating can not be

overstated.

Too many farmers rely on watching cows in the yard - one bulling cow can be ridden multiple times by different cows giving the impression of multiple cows bulling - Tailpaint is the only effective method

of actually measuring PREMATING HEATS.

So - What should you be doing?

Tailpaint colours should be getting sorted now - you need at least FOUR colours -

ideally FIVE!!

Then start by painting cows as they calve and rotating colours EVERY THREE

WEEKS. See the in-depth plan on page 5.

MATING - TWO THINGS TO DO

South Waikato Veterinary Services

METRICHECK

Metrichecking is the most economical way of finding “dirty” cows. By “dirty” we mean cows

suffering from ENDOMETRITIS.

Endometritis is a low grade infection that causes reduced conception rates. Studies done show cows that are suffering from this take around 10 days longer to get in calf than cows without an infection. Much like non-cycling cows, this is a hidden loss - only evident at scanning time as a lower In-C a l f R a t e . Remember that lower In-Calf Rates mean less days in milk

which means less $$.



Tips !!

Spring Newsletter 20

It is generally assumed that most cases of mastitis

early in the season are environmental, whilst those

later in the season are contagious (cow-cow

transfer). However, some farms will

have mixed sources of infection early

in the season, and that is where

t r a d i t i o n a l l y r e c o m m e n d e d

treatments for spring mastitis such as

Lactapen won’t produce an effective

cure. So if you are having recurring

mastitis cases and have not sent any

milk samples in to be tested,

reaching for PenClox whilst waiting

for culture results would likely be the best option.

To find out more give the clinic a call to discuss

whether PenClox would be suitable for your farm.

Penclox 1200 is a new intramammary mastitis

treatment with two active ingredients included to

target all the common types of bacteria that cause

mastitis.

It is a dual combination of Penicillin

and Cloxacillin in one syringe, that

has been developed, trialed and tailor

-made in New Zealand for our cows.

It contains 1gm of Penicillin (like

Lactapen) and 200mg of Cloxacillin

(like Orbenin LA/Nitroclox) so in

theory will treat all the main mastitis

pathogens with one tube. This will reduce the risk

of treatment failure due to Penicillin resistance or

from using the wrong type of antibiotics to begin

with.

PenClox 1200 - For the treatment of Mastitis

Tip Two - Calcium

Calcium supplementation to the colostrum mob and preferable to

end of AB period...limeflour 150g/cow/day or 300 g/cow/day

if dusted.

Tip One - Magnesium

Magnesium Sulphate in the water

trough rather than Magnesium

Chloride

Research has shown that it is better

than magnesium Chloride in

preventing milk fever

Its not about the DCAD either!!!

Big Tip Three - Monensin

The addition of monensin to a cows ration improves rumen energy efficiency...FACT

Based on the Otorohanga Trial over 245 days -cows produced 230 more litres and 9.8kg

additional milk solids.

*The Cost is 1.64cents /day over 245 days = $4.01/Cow

9.8ms/cow @$ 7.50 /MS = $73.50

Yes , we sell it BUT the science is there

* the 1.64cents /dose is based on our 20% Monensin product we sell...very cost effective..

Speak to Steve on the 20% Monensin product - limited stock available



Blaa


EXAM

PLE



Magnesium: is important for maintaining calcium homeostasis. Poor magnesium levels precalving

means greater risk of milk fever pre and post calving.

Some Magnesium Rules:

Cows require around 35g of elemental Magnesium in the month precalving

Dust with 60-100g Causmag( 45-49% Mg) per cow/day PLUS..

40-60 g Magnesium Sulphate in the water trough is BEST (preferable to Magnesium chloride) a mix

of 50:50 Mg SO4 and MgCl2 can be used.

Post calving magnesium supplementation : Jerseys 15g Mg /cow/day, Friesians 20 g Mg /cow/day.

Calcium:

A surplus of calcium precalving during the precalving period has traditionally been believed to

suppress the normal mechanisms controlling calcium absorption. Traditionally we don't feed calcium

precalving……….BUT we have had to break that rule on many occasions and have advised the

feeding of Gypsum (calcium sulphate) in the springer mobs to prevent precalving milk fever with

excellent results. This is not a general recommendation, consult with Steve, Eddy or Vaughan if you

have a problem with cows going down precalving or in the colostrum mob.

Post calving Milking cows need calcium. Supplement with 150g/cow/day of Limeflour each day (or

300g/day if dusting) for as long as possible……..till end of mating… Steve recommendation!!!

Calcium and Magnesium -fact or fiction


Written REPRODUCTIVE PLANS

Like the look of what’s on the other page?? That is a comprehensive plan detailing what should

be done, and when, for the entire lead-up and first 3 weeks of mating. It includes everything that

could be done for a herd trying to improve their reproductive performance and can be tailored to

suit what you want done in particular.

Any Questions? Call Steve, Vaughan or Eddy at the clinic for a sit down consultation.

Too Busy? The crucial feature of most plans is to have tail painted the herd into calving groups

based on THREE WEEK BLOCKS. Follow this pattern and we can come in at almost anytime

and have a good idea of where to go

Research has shown that magnesium in the form of magnesium sulphate

compared to causmag or magnesium chloride was better at preventing

milk fever in cows .

Its not the DCAD effect !!

The reason why??? Possibly the sulphur component ..we don't know




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What is Listeriosis?

Listeriosis is a disease of cattle of all ages that

is caused by the bacteria Listeria

monocytogenes.

This bacteria is found throughout the

environment, mainly in soil, and is not

considered very pathogenic (compared with

something like Salmonella).

Infection with Listeria can cause abortions (one

of the reasons pregnant women should avoid

uncooked salads) and nervous disease - the

most common sign.

Outbreaks are commonly associated with

poorly made silage - normal silage pH is

around pH6 which kills off Listeria, poor silage

or silage that does not have a have enough

sugar content precut will not drop to this point

enabling Listeria to live.

So how does playing with DCAD work?

To control DCAD effectively it needs to be a

NEGATIVE VALUE - reductions in DCAD from 400

down to 200 have little effect on blood pH. This is

where we encounter the first problem with DCAD in

NZ pasture based systems - Our DCAD IS HUGE.

On NZ farms DCAD can vary from around 200 up to

1000. The required amount of anions to reduce

DCAD to negative values can be up to a kilo of Mag

Chloride or Sulphate!!

The next problem with DCAD is that it has a

relatively short duration of effects - only about 2-3

weeks after getting DCAD below zero the pH of the

cows blood will become to normalize - meaning the

diet needs to be selectively fed to springing cows

only.

So does DCAD matter? In short - Not on pasture

based dairy farms.

DCAD stands for “Dietary Cation Anion

Difference”

The theory behind DCAD is that careful diet

manipulation of Cations (electrolytes with a positive

value - Potassium and Sodium are the big players)

and Anions (those with negative values - Chloride

and Sulphate are the big players) can decrease the

pH of blood - making it more acidic.

What use is acidic blood?

The main hormone controlling Calcium absorption

(from Bones and the gut) is Parathyroid hormone

(PTH). There is a marked increase in the sensitivity

of tissues to PTH when blood pH drops (From

around 7.45 down to 7.35 (A relatively small

change in blood pH)). This increased sensitivity

helps to gear the cow for the sudden need to

absorb a lot more calcium from calving.

DCAD - does it matter?

Listeriosis


Nervous disease is associated with the parts of

the brain that become infected. The most

common parts are those that control balance

so the number one sign we see in infected

cows is ‘circling’, followed by paralysis of one

side of the face.

So what should you do?

If you see a cow with presenting signs like this

it is best to call us for a definitive diagnosis.

Treatment can be successful but generally only

if started early and aggressively



Stress free and painless calf dehorning, as performed by South Waikato Vets for the past 14

years. Calves (ideally 2-6 weeks old) are sedated in their own pens, local anaesthetic is used to

dull the nerves to the horn buds and then electric fired disbudding irons are used to cauterize the

horn bud. This is the safe and reliable way to dehorn your calves.

Calves after sedation & local

anaesthetic

All enquiries welcome!

What we require from you

Calves, preferably between 2-6 weeks of age

Fine weather

An area for us to sedate them in - clean dry calf sheds or on

the yard

Access to power (or we can bring the generator)

Calves not to be milk fed that morning (if we are dehorning before 12pm)

Calves done after 12pm may be milk fed that morning

Ideally in groups of 50-100 calves at a time


Calf Dehorning 2013

Stress free & Painless

Farmers able to tag ears at the same time

Included in the price - we remove extra teats for you

Approximately 60 calves an hour!

Cost effective 7.17 exc per calf

We have our own generator if there is no access to power

We can do Ultravac 5 in 1, Salmonella vaccinations & Dectomax

worming at the same time

No extra teats!

spring newsletter south waikato veterinary...

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